Located near the campus of Principia College in Los Angeles, Arden Wood is an independent living and rest and study facility for senior Christian Scientists. Arden Wood’s mission is to support healing through skillful Christian Science nursing care and training, inspired living, and Christly service.
For more than 80 years, Christian Science nurses have been providing spiritual, tender care for those who are in need of physical and emotional healing. Each day, residents receive Christian Science nursing treatment and spiritual direction from a qualified practitioner who has been trained by the Arden Wood School of Christian Science Nursing.
Christian Science nursing care, as explained in Mary Baker Eddy’s writings on healing, is based on the understanding that all disease and suffering is caused by false beliefs and habits. These beliefs can be changed by replacing them with the truth of God’s Word, as revealed in the Bible and in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy. The resulting healing is the result of the divine influence of the spiritual laws of the universe, whose authority is derived from the divine Word itself.
Arden Wood also provides a variety of other residential services for seniors who want to live more independently and who are in need of Christian Science nursing care or assistance with daily tasks, such as bathing and dressing. These services are billed separately from room and board. For information about these services, please call.
In addition, there are many Arden Wood Christian Science nursing care available in the Bay Area and individual nurses that may be able to provide Christian Science home nursing care for individuals in their own homes. For help in locating a nurse, contact either Arden Wood or Fern Lodge.
Many insurance companies allow patients to include the cost of a Christian Science practitioner and nurse in their policy. For more information about including these costs in your coverage, contact your insurance agent.
As a part of its Christian Science ministry, Arden Wood offers The Christian Science Nursing Arts Training program, which provides instruction in the principles and practice of Christian Science nursing. The program includes classroom sessions, practical experience, and clinical instruction under the guidance of an experienced Christian Science nurse. Students learn to provide the spiritual, moral and physical care that is the foundation of a Christian Science nurse’s work.
Before coming to Arden Wood, a resident must designate a “home and care guarantor”* who will be responsible for making arrangements to return the patient to their home or other location when the stay at Arden Wood is over. Additionally, it is important that each resident have an Advance Health Care Directive AHCD or a legal representative to make medical decisions on their behalf in the event of incapacity. For more information about AHCDs, contact Arden Wood or Fern Lodge.